The Cosmopolitan is arguably one of the most influential drinks to come along in the past 25 years. It was the "it" drink of the nineties (thanks, Sex and the City.) The drink's popularity sparked a renewed interest in cocktails and ushered in an era of the -tini—an era, some might say, when drinks were prized for their appearances more than their flavor.

The original drink was created in 1985 at a bar called The Strand in Miami's South Beach. It was a mix of Absolut Citron, triple sec, bottled Rose's lime, and cranberry juice. Not long after that, Toby Cecchini and Dale DeGroff tweaked the recipe, bringing in fresh lime juice instead of Rose's, and the drink's popularity skyrocketed.

For this column, I wanted to update the Cosmo for today's tastes. Since replacing the bottled lime cordial with fresh lime had already been done, I thought about how to focus the flavors further, and play with texture a bit.

So in the place of cranberry juice, I used cranberry sorbet, which provides a rich red color and intense berry flavor. Its tart bite is balanced out by a subtle sweetness. If you can't find cranberry sorbet in the store there are several recipes to homemade versions on the Internet. One of my personal favorites is a cranberry vanilla sorbet from Lottie and Doof.

We top the drink off with a nice healthy float of sparkling wine, which fizzes on your tongue as you taste your way through tart cranberry, bright vodka, and fresh lime. The result: an upgraded Cosmo that's just as pretty as its predecessor.